Otolaryngology (Ear, Nose & Throat)

Otolaryngology is a specialty devoted to the evaluation and treatment of ear, nose and throat (ENT) disorders as well as head and neck, hearing and communication problems. We understand how ENT conditions can affect hearing, learning, speech and sleep and impact development. Our teams provide care that takes your whole child, not just the condition, into account.

Learn More About Otolaryngology

ENT conditions in children can range from recurring ear infections and enlarged tonsils, to sinus diseases or a complex craniofacial anomaly (irregular or abnormal growth of head and facial bones). Nemours ear, nose and throat doctors, called otolaryngologists, are board-certified ENT surgeons who are highly trained in the latest minimally invasive and endoscopic surgery techniques.

The most common procedures our surgeons perform include:

myringotomy with tube placement (removal of fluid from the middle ear and insertion of ear tubes)

Nemours surgeons are also skilled in advanced reconstructive techniques and often work with other specialists to try to combine one or more surgeries during a single hospitalization, which helps reduce the number of times your child needs to receive anesthesia.

Support Service for Overnight Stays

When you bring your child to see an ENT specialist (ear, nose and throat doctor) at Nemours Children’s Specialty Care, Jacksonville, you can expect exceptional care. Named among the “Best Doctors in America,” our physicians provide comprehensive pediatric otolaryngology, head and neck, and facial plastic surgical care for children.

A Center of Excellence for Otolaryngology in the Southeast

The Nemours pediatric otolaryngology division in Jacksonville, Fla. is a recognized leader in providing state-of-the-art ENT programs, such as:

Every Nemours pediatric otolaryngologist has extensive training and experience in treating wide range of ENT conditions in children, from the most common (ear tubes surgery and tonsillectomies) to complex (hearing loss). Our highly skilled ENT surgeons perform specialized procedures that are unique to North Florida and the Southeast.

Highlights include:

National recognition for a new life-saving surgical procedure for children born with an abnormally small jaw (a condition called Pierre Robin sequence, or PRS).

We believe strongly in educating families and want you to know that you are an important part of your child’s care team. We welcome your active involvement in the decision-making process. We also strive to make things as easy and convenient as possible for you and your child.

Because our ear, nose and throat doctors, audiologists and speech therapists are all under one roof, your child can often have multiple appointments scheduled in one day. You can also schedule appointments at our convenient specialty care locations in Jacksonville South and Fleming Island.

Our Pediatric ENT Programs and Services in Jacksonville, Fla.

Pediatric Cochlear Implant and Auditory Rehabilitation Program

A cochlear implant is a surgically implanted device for children with severe to profound hearing impairment who do not benefit from hearing aids. Our cochlear implant and auditory rehabilitation program is recognized nationally as a leading program for pediatric implantation and provides ongoing therapy and long-term support to children and families, both before and after cochlear implant surgery. We also collaborate in the community with the Clarke Schools for Hearing and Speech.

We offer two implantable (surgically placed) hearing devices for children ages 5 and older, with conductive or mixed hearing loss. These devices can also benefit children with single-sided deafness — and both devices can be worn in a softband before age 5 or if implantation is not desired.

Bone Anchored Hearing Aid (BAHA)

The BAHA is a surgically implanted system that works through direct bone conduction and includes a titanium implant, an external abutment and a sound processor. The system enhances natural bone transmission as a pathway for sound to travel directly to the inner ear, bypassing the outer and middle ear.

The implant is placed during a short surgical procedure, which over time integrates with the skull bone (usually 3–6 months) depending on the age of the child. Once integrated, the processor (which is worn on the external abutment) transmits sound vibrations via the abutment to the implant. The implant vibrates, sending vibrations within the skull and inner ear. Hair cells within the inner ear stimulate nerve fibers, allowing hearing to occur.

Sophono Bone Conduction Hearing System

The Sophono is an innovative abutment-free device. This system eliminates the need for a protruding abutment by using a magnetic titanium implant, which securely holds the external processor in place through intact skin and hair via an external spacer magnet. The Sophono is implanted in a short, single-stage procedure. The processor can be fitted for the patient in about 4 weeks after surgery or once the incision has healed. Like the BAHA, direct stimulation to the inner ear via vibrations allows for hearing to occur.

Neurotologic Program for Balance (Vestibular) Disorders

Neurotology focuses on the neurological (related to the body’s nervous system) aspects of the auditory (hearing) and vestibular (balance) systems. Working with the pediatric neurosurgery division at Wolfson Children’s Hospital, we are one of only a few centers in the nation with expertise in treating children with balance problems (dizziness, falling or the sensation of falling, disorientation, or nausea).

Nemours Children’s Specialty Care, Jacksonville houses the only balance facility dedicated to children in the region and our child-frienldy, state-of-the-art equipment helps us pinpoint both the cause and the most effective treatment for balance problems in children. Our balance lab is also a leading center for research in vestibular diseases in children.

Facial anomalies, or craniofacial disorders (irregular or abnormal growth of head and facial bones), are congenital (meaning present at birth) and include conditions such as cleft lip and/or cleft palate. Our program provides leading edge treatment and surgical procedures never before offered in our area.

These include a very successful “distraction” program for children with Pierre Robin sequence (PRS). PRS is a rare, life-threatening condition that causes the tongue to fall back into the throat, making it difficult for babies to breathe and swallow. Children with this condition often need a breathing and feeding tube until age 5, but our surgical team performs a state-of-the-art procedure that helps grow new bone in the jaw and treats the disorder by helping to expand the airway without the need for breathing or feeding tubes.

We also offer advanced treatment, unique in Northeast Florida, for children with vascular anomalies (blood vessels that have developed abnormally).

Nemours provides specialized care for children with voice and swallowing disorders, including advanced endoscopic airway procedures which use a thin, flexible viewing instrument (endoscope) to provide an inside view of the airway. State-of-the-art voice and swallowing equipment allow our doctors and speech pathologists to evaluate and treat children with range voice and swallowing disorders, like Velopharyngeal insufficiency (VPI). VPI occurs when the soft palate muscle in roof of the mouth (velopharyngeal sphincter) fails to close off airflow during speech, allowing air to escape through the nose instead of the mouth. This can cause a resonance disorder or “nasal” speech. In our VPI clinic, our ENT team will diagnose the type and cause of your child’s problem and recommend treatment that may include speech therapy, surgical correction or both.

Center for Rhinology and Sinus Disease

The ENT specialists at Nemours perform the newest techniques available in treating nasal (rhinology) and sinus problems in children. These techniques include the latest endoscopic surgical procedures which use a thin, flexible viewing instrument (endoscope) to provide an inside view of the nose and sinuses. Our center was the first in Florida to use a new balloon sinuplasty procedure to treat sinus disease in children. Because nasal and sinus problems are common in children with cystic fibrosis (CF), we’ve also become a leading treatment center in Northeast Florida and Southeast Georgia for children with CF.

Working as a Team to Care For Your Child

Whether your child’s ENT problem is straightforward (such as a chronic ear infection) or much more complicated (such as deafness), we practice medicine in a way that brings together skills and talent from different areas of expertise.

Your Child’s ENT Team Members

Members from different specialties throughout Nemours collaborate to create solutions to treat and meet your child’s needs. Health professionals who may be involved include:

Teaming Up With Wolfson Children's Hospital and Your Child's Doctor

A unique relationship with Wolfson Children’s Hospital in Jacksonville, Fla. allows our Nemours ENT specialists to provide pediatric ENT consultations in the Emergency Department for acute problems or injuries, and in the hospital or outpatient surgery center for other ENT cases that require surgery and anesthesia.

During any procedure that requires anesthesia, rest assured that our Nemours pediatric anesthesiologists are right there to talk with you and to make decisions on the best types of anesthesia medicine to make sure your child is comfortable.

Our award-winning electronic health records and digital photography also make it easy for us to share test results and treatment plans with your child’s primary care doctor, as well as with other Nemours specialists.

If you see information that needs updating or if you encounter a missing page or link, please let us know.
To request an appointment, please contact us by phone.

If this is a medical emergency or if you have an urgent health-related question, please call 911
or contact your local emergency number.

Please do not submit personal medical information through this form. We cannot offer medical advice online.
We won’t use contact information you provide on this form for marketing or solicitation purposes.
Thank you for helping us.